Frelbro Corp. v. Commissioner

36 T.C. 864, 1961 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 95
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedAugust 18, 1961
DocketDocket No. 65552
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 36 T.C. 864 (Frelbro Corp. v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Frelbro Corp. v. Commissioner, 36 T.C. 864, 1961 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 95 (tax 1961).

Opinion

Fokrester, Judge:

Respondent has determined a deficiency in income tax for the calendar year 1952 in the amount of $1,473.04 and a personal holding company surtax, under section 500,1 of $24,462.07. By amended answer he seeks to increase both amounts.

The issues presented for our determination are:

(1) What was the amount of the payment to petitioner in 1952 from Brown-Longyear Motors and what portion of it was a dividend to petitioner in that year ?

(2) Whether Brown-Longyear had a credit balance in its earnings and profits account at the end of 1951 so as to constitute the above distribution a dividend;

(3) In any event, whether the dividend was required to be eliminated as an intercompany transaction;

(4) Whether petitioner, in its consolidated return for 1952, is entitled to a net operating loss deduction by virtue of the net operating loss incurred by its former subsidiary in the period immediately after petitioner and its subsidiary ceased to be affiliated corporations;

(5) Whether petitioner, in the determination of its liability for 1952, is entitled to credit for the tax paid by its former subsidiary subsequent to the affiliation on the latter’s return for the full calendar year 1952;

(6) Dependent on the above issues, whether petitioner was a personal holding company in 1952.

FINDINGS OP PACT.

Some of the facts have been stipulated and are so found.

Petitioner is a corporation, organized under the laws of the State of New York in 1931. It maintains its principal office in White Plains, New York. Its principal business activity is the holding of real estate for investment purposes. Its other activities are more fully described below. At all times, including 1952, it has kept its books and records on an accrual, calendar year basis and has so filed its Federal income tax returns. It filed such returns with the director of internal revenue for the fourteenth district of New York.

Prior to 1929, Fred L. Brown, as sole proprietor, had been operating agencies for the sale of Buick and Chevrolet automobiles. John K. Longyear had been working for him since February 1920. In 1929 the Buick franchise was incorporated under the name of Brown-Buick Corporation and in 1930 the Chevrolet franchise was separately incorporated under the name of Brown-Chevrolet Corporation (hereinafter referred to as Buick and Chevrolet, respectively). On December 31, 1941, these two corporations were consolidated, pursuant to the New York Stock Corporation Law, into Brown Buick-Chevrolet Corporation. When the two franchises were lost in 1944 the corporate name was changed to Brown-Longyear Corporation, hereinafter referred to as B-L, which name was retained through 1952. At all times material herein, prior to July 15, 1952, B-L’s 310 outstanding shares were all held by petitioner.

Fred L. Brown died in April 1944 and Longyear assumed most of the management duties although at this time he had no ownership interest in the corporation.

In April 1945, however, Longyear entered into a management agreement with B-L under which he was to receive 50 percent of that corporation’s net profits. At the same time petitioner granted him an option to purchase 51 percent of the B-L stock (158.1 shares) for $42,500.

When B-L declared a dividend it would charge its “earned surplus” account for the amount thereof and make a corresponding credit to an intercompany account with petitioner. This was a running account reflecting various transactions (including dividends) between B-L and petitioner. There was no practice to clear its balance periodically, said balance merely being altered as one party or the other made payments on account. Likewise, there was no policy to make cash transfers simultaneous with or corresponding to dividend declarations. B-L simply made cash transfers when and as warranted by its financial position. Thus, the account on B-L books reflected the following transactions from the start of 1949 to the end of 1951:

[[Image here]]

On May 28,1952, at a combined meeting of the directors and stockholders of B-L a dividend of $19,598.22 was declared.

On July 8, 1952, at a special meeting of petitioner, it was agreed that the sum of $52,213.91 be paid to B-L as “capital surplus.” At a meeting of B-L’s stockholders and directors held later the same evening — the identical parties being present — a dividend of $11,771.88 was declared (bringing declared dividends for 1952 to $31,370.10) and it was agreed that B-L issue a note to petitioner for $20,000 in part payment of the dividends declared. Said note was issued on July 8, 1952.

At about the same time, Longyear announced bis intention to exercise his option. A meeting of petitioner, with its attorneys and accountants, was held and Longyear did exercise the option on the understanding that B-L would not pay cash on account of its dividend obligations until warranted by its working capital position, there being a present need for ready cash to meet inventory requirements. Longyear exercised the option on July 15,1952, and on July IT, 1952, a share certificate was issued to him.

On October 31, 1952, “In accord with resolution adopted at Special meeting held 7/8/52” petitioner issued its check to B-L in the amount of $52,213.91. B-L treated this as a donation to its surplus and did not give petitioner credit for this amount in its intercompany account. On the same date B-L issued checks to petitioner as follows:

(1) $50,228.46 in payment of “balance due 1/1/52” ; and
(2) $11,370.10 which together with the $20,000 note paid off the 1952 dividend declaration of $31,370.10.

At the time B-L drew these latter two checks, taking into account the donation by petitioner on the same date, B-L had sufficient amounts on deposit to cover these two checks and still meet its immediate requirement for working funds of about $50,000.

On December 31, 1941, when the predecessor to B-L was formed, the “earned surplus” 2 accounts of the two corporations consolidated showed the following balances:

Chevrolet Buick
Debit balance from operating losses since inception (net of operations)-- ($27, 727. 91)($67, 754. 18)
Total debit_ ($95, 482. 09)
Credits:
Cancellation of preferred stock_ 35, 000. 00 75, 000. 00
Cancellation of liability to share-holder_ 6, 184. 46 18, 582. 13
Asset writeups_ 3, 120. 32 7, 602. 11
Total credits_ 44, 304. 78 101, 184. 24
Credit balance-16, 576. 87 33, 430. 06

On December 31, 1951, apart from these balances of Chevrolet and Buick, B-L on its own had accumulated earnings from operations of $83,612.56 (actual earnings less dividends paid out).

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

J. A. Tobin Constr. Co. v. Commissioner
85 T.C. No. 58 (U.S. Tax Court, 1985)
Cox v. Commissioner
78 T.C. No. 73 (U.S. Tax Court, 1982)
Allied Fidelity Corp. v. Commissioner
66 T.C. 1068 (U.S. Tax Court, 1976)
Singleton v. Commissioner
64 T.C. 320 (U.S. Tax Court, 1975)
Darrow v. Commissioner
64 T.C. 217 (U.S. Tax Court, 1975)
Brown v. Commissioner
54 T.C. 1475 (U.S. Tax Court, 1970)
Jones Lumber Co. v. Commissioner
1967 T.C. Memo. 81 (U.S. Tax Court, 1967)
Foster v. Commissioner
1966 T.C. Memo. 273 (U.S. Tax Court, 1966)
Clarksdale Rubber Co. v. Commissioner
45 T.C. 234 (U.S. Tax Court, 1965)
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad v. United States
162 Ct. Cl. 1 (Court of Claims, 1963)
Midland Management Co. v. Commissioner
38 T.C. 211 (U.S. Tax Court, 1962)
Frelbro Corp. v. Commissioner
36 T.C. 864 (U.S. Tax Court, 1961)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
36 T.C. 864, 1961 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 95, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/frelbro-corp-v-commissioner-tax-1961.